Gate operating device



Jan. 17, 1933. B, AKERS 1,894,549 GATE OPERATING DEVICE Filed June 4,1951 2 sheets-sheet 1 LAM Jan. 17, 1933. B. B. AKERS GATE OPERATINGDEVICE Filed June 4. 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I BB fll era Patented Jan.17,1933

TENT OFFICE I BERTHA B. AKERS, OF CHADRON, NEBRASKA GATE OPERATINGDEVICE Application filed June 4,

This invention relates to gate openers, and more particularly to anautomatic gate opener and closer.

An object of this invention is to provide 5 means operated by a vehiclewhereby a closure member in the form of a gate or door will be openedfrom means disposed remotely from the closure.

Another object of this invention isto provide in a device of this kindmeans whereby the closure may be readily swung into closed positionafter having been opened by a vehiclepassing over a tripping member.

A further object of this invention is to provide in a device of thiskind means whereby the gate will be readily maintained in open positionuntil the vehicle has passed througa the opening, whereupon the vehicleis adapted to ride over a tripping member for releasing the open gatefor swinging into closed position. I

A still further object of this invention is to provide a device of thiskind which may be readily adapted for use with either gate constructionsor door constructions whereby the gate or door will be opened uponengaging an operating member disposed remotely therefrom.

The above and various other objects and advantages of this inventionwill in part be described in and in part be understood from thefollowing detailed description of the present preferred embodiment, thesame being illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 isa detail top plan view of a de vice constructed according to thepreferred embodiment of this invention;

Figure 2 is a detail side elevation partly in section taken on the line22 of Figurel;

Figure 3 is a detail end elevation partly in section of one of the gateoperating seg- 1931. Serial No. 542,120.

elevation of one of the gate operating cam members;

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 6; V

Figure 8 is an enlarged sectional view paatly in detail of the gatelocking member, an

Figure 9 is a detail top plan view of a modification of this device.'Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals'of reference designatecorresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10designates a support which is disposed in vertical position and is shownin Figure 1 as a post or the like disposed on one side of a gateopening. A gate member 11 is swingably mounted on a vertical bar 12which, is held in outstanding relation to the support 10 by means ofI-bolts 13 or the like. The gate 11 is adapted to have vertical slidingmovement and horizontal swinging movement with respect to the support10. g

A pair of gate opening members, generally designamd as 14, are pivotallymounted on brackets 15 secured to the support 10 by means of a bolt 16or the like. These gate opening members 14 are similar in constructionand are provided with a cam member 17 disposedbeneath the lower portionof the gate 11, this cam portion 17 being outwardly curved at the outerend portion thereof and inwardly curved, as at 18, which inwardly curvedportion terminates in a lever 19, the

purpose of which will be hereinafter de- 5 scribed. A pivot member 20engages the gate operating member 1A for pivotally mounting this gateoperating member on the bracket 15.

A remotely disposed tripping member, generally designated as 21, isconnected to the lever 19 by means of a flexible cord or member 22. Thislever operating member 21 comprises a base 23 having a bearing 24mounted thereon, which rotatably receives a shaft 25 on one end of whichis mounted a segmental member, generally designated as 26. Thissegmental member 26 is provided with radial arms 27 and a groovedsegment portion 28 within which the gate operating cord or member 22 isadapted to be disposed upon partial rotation or rocking of the segmentalmember 26.

A weight 29 is carried by the segmental member 26 and is adapted tomaintain the radial arms 26 in substantially vertical position when thesegmental member 26 is inoperative. The opposite end of the shaft isprovided with an L-shaped extension 30 which has one portion thereof invertical position when the device is inoperative.

The other portion ofthe L-shaped member 30 is in horizontal position andoverlies a plate 31 having spaced transverse grooves 32 in the uppersurface thereof in which the horizontal leg of the L-shaped member 30 isadapted to be disposed upon engagement of this horizontal portion with awheel passing over the plate 31. The opposite ends of the plate 31 arepreferably tapered or upwardly inclined so as to permit a wheel toreadily ride over the upper surface thereof and strike the remotelydisposed gate openin member 30. A oair of s rin s 33 are con- 2: l P gmember 28.

nected at one end to the vertical leg of the member 30, the oppositeends of the springs 30 being secured to the base 23 on opposite sides ofthe shaft 25, these springs 33 being adapted to coact with the weight 29in maintaining the remotely disposed gate operating member 30 inupraised position.

In order to maintain the gate 11 in open position, I have provided alatch member 34 which is slidably disposed in the bracket 15 and isadapted to permit the downward rocking of the lever 19, but to preventthe upward rocking thereof until the latch member 34 has been movedinwardly of the bracket 15. A latch operating lever 35 is pivoted to thebracket 15 and engages this latch member 34, this latch lever 35 beingconstantly urged into latching position by means of a spring 36. A pairof opposed cam members 37 are carried by the bracket 15, these cammembers 37 being constructed in the form of a segment and having theupper edge portion thereof downwardly and inwardly inclined so that whenthe gate opening cam member 14 is released by moving the latch 34inwardly, the lower edge of the gate will engage the upper edge of thegate closing cams 37 and ride inwardly and downwardly thereon.

When the gate is closed, the gate is adapted to be disposed intermediatethe inner ends of each of these opposed cam members 37. The gate openingcams 14 are constantly urged into released position with respect to thegate 11 by means of springs 38 which constantl urge these cam members 14into lowermost position. The latch levers 35 are connected to thesegment 26 by means of a flexible connecting member 39, one end of thisflexible member 39 being connectedto one of the radial arms 27 of thesegmental Preferably, this point of connection is opposite from thepoint of connecfacilitate the longitudinal movement of the' flexiblemember 39. In like manner, the

cable or flexible member 22 may be trained over pulleys 41 mounted onoutstanding arms 42 car ied by the'bracket 15.

As shown in the drawings and particularly Figure 9, the device hereindisclosed may be used in connection with the opening and closing of adoor such as a garage door or the like, in which case only one bracket15 will be mounted on one side of the garage for engagement with onedoor and another bracket of similar although opposed construction, willbe mounted on the other side of the garage opening. In other words, a.left hand and a right hand door opening cam 14 will be pivotally mountedon the bracket 15 and provided with operating levers 19 which aresimilar in construct on to the pre ferred embodiment. p

In this modification, the doors 11 will be slidably carried by verticalsliding and horizontal swinginghinges, generally designated as 43. Thearms 42 of the bracket 15 have double pulleys 44 through which theflexible members connecting the operating lever and tripping latch areconnected to the door operating construction, generally designated as 21which is similar to the construction of the preferred embodiment.

In the operation of this device, when one wheel of the vehicle ridesover the plate 31 and strikes the gate tripping arm 30, the segment 26will be partially rotated and the rotation of this segment will pull thecable or flexible member 22 and likewise rock the lever 19 so as toraise one of the arms 14 for swinging the gate 11 in a directionoppositely from;

the approach of the vehicle. The gate 11 will be lifted upwardly uponrocking of the lever 19 andat the same time, the gate will gravitatinglyswing downwardly and outwardly on the upper curved surface of the cammember 14, being held in a position sub stantially in alinement with theline of travel of the vehicle by means of the latch member 34. Theoutward swinging of the gate 11 is facilitated by means of a roller 45which is rotatably disposed on the lower edge of the the cam members 14and 37. After the vehicle has passed through the gate opening, one ofthe wheels of the vehicle will strike a plate 31 disposed within theclosure and rock another operating lever 30 so as to trip the latchlever 35 and pull the latch 34 inwardly and out of engagement with thecam operating lever 19. The gate will then gravitatingly swing inwardlyand downwardly on the cam surface of the segmental cam member 37 into aposition across the gate opening and will be held in this'position bymeans of resilient latch members 46 which are disgate ll in a positionfor contact with both of posed on the side of the gate openingoppositely from the'supporting post 10. These gate latch members 46 areconstructed in pairs and have their inner ends disposed in spacedrelation to each other, so as to hold therebetween the swinging or freeend of the gate 11. When the gate is initially swung into open position,the gate is raised vertically until it is out of engagement with thelatch members l6 so that free swinging movement of the gate willthereafter be permitted. It is, of course, understood that variouschanges and modifications may be made in the details of construction anddesign of the above specifically described embodiment of this inventionwithout departing from the spirit thereof, such changes andmodifications being restricted only by the scope of the following claim.

I claim An automatic gate opener and closer comprising a support, agate, means for mounting the gate on the support for Vertical andhorizontal movement, a lever pivoted to the support, a curved cam memberformed with the lever and extending beneath the gate, a spring engagingthe lever to normally hold the cam depressed, a fixed cam carried by thesupport, remotely disposed means engaging the lever to raise the curvedcam member and .coactively raise the gate for opening thereof, latchmeans engaging the lever to hold the first cam upraised and the gateopen, and remotely positioned latch operating means,

said lever upon release from said latch discharging the gate onto thefixed cam, said fixed cam being so positioned as to swing the gate intoclosed position simultaneous with the downwardmovement thereof.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix' my signature.

1 BEBTHA B. AKERS.

